


How long, baby, have I been away

by phalangine



Category: Constantine (TV)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Cuddling & Snuggling, Established Relationship, M/M, No Plot No Hurt Just Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-13
Updated: 2019-06-13
Packaged: 2020-05-07 05:24:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 815
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19202770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phalangine/pseuds/phalangine
Summary: John is a simple man. So is Chas. That's not a bad thing.





	How long, baby, have I been away

It’s a quiet night.

They don’t get many of these, and John is determined to make the most of it. He’s dressed himself comfortably in a pair of the soft pants Chas bought him as a surprise gift a few months back- they’ve been together long enough that the four-pack of pants was a practical gift rather than a fun, suggestive one- and one of Chas’ worn vests. He’s wrapped one of Chas’ smooth sheets around himself, which feels better than silk when it slides over his skin.

Most importantly, he’s in bed with Chas.

It had been so long since John had something like a stable relationship, he’d forgotten how good it is just to be near someone. Not starting anything. Not not-starting anything. Not angry but unable to walk away. Not even simply too tired to get it up. Just enjoying someone else’s closeness.

Lying with his head on Chas’ lap with nothing to do but let himself doze as Chas idly strokes his hair is the sort of boring couple thing John had been sure he’d never have. There aren’t many people who can get John to be still. Even fewer can manage it without tying him up. Fewer still make him want to be still for its own sake.

Chas has managed it with clean linens, a warm cuppa made just the way John likes it, and the simple act of getting into bed and pulling out a tablet.

He’d looked so inviting with his newly acquired reading glasses, his skin still pink from his nightly shower, as he pulled back the duvet on John’s side in obvious invitation, John hadn’t thought to think anything of it beyond the opportunity to shake off some of his perpetual exhaustion in Chas’ company.

Not that he would’ve been averse to taking Chas’ clothes off if that had been the sort of invitation Chas had been extending- maybe not the glasses, if John could get Chas to cooperate on that. Chas resents needing them, complains under his breath every time he’s forced to take them from their case- or, more frequently, his pocket, because Chas isn’t much better than John about keeping his belongings in order. It wouldn’t be that difficult to get Chas to keep them on; he’s done it before. He’s an adaptable fella when he’s in the mood to be. The trick is knowing how to get him in that mood.

Tempting as the thought of getting fucked hard enough to drop into a well-earned slumber is, John is just too comfortable to second-guess his initial assessment. 

Even a master of the dark arts can appreciate a night in.

Sighing happily, he shifts a little, getting closer and wrapping his arm more firmly around Chas’ thigh.

“You good?” Chas asks. He doesn’t stop petting John.

“‘M fine,” John mumbles. “Just doing a little rearranging is all.”

Chas doesn’t reply, but he does move his hand to brush his thumb over John’s cheek. It’s a small touch, one of thousands he’s given John since they got together, but it makes John’s chest ache anyway.

He hadn’t realized how long he’d gone without being touched until Chas started offering him little bits like this, returning John’s greedy hands with his own. A kiss to John’s temple. His hand clasped around John’s as they drive. Their thighs and shoulders pressed together at a diner.

A hand yanking his arm before John marches off to drive a silver dagger through some murderous werewolf’s heart, pulling John close as Chas kisses him hard enough it might sustain him after John’s death.

It’s not unlike the feeling of emerging after getting lost in spell books and realizing he hadn’t eaten in more than a day, but unlike with food, John hasn’t found a point where Chas’ touch becomes painful.

He isn’t convinced that point exists, and if it does, it’s so distant it may as well not exist.

For once, John is warm and safe, and the man he loves is warm and safe and sat next to him in their bed, wearing the glasses he picked out because John told him they make him look distinguished. It was only a little bit of a lie- Chas does look distinguished.

He also looks like he’d bend John over a boardroom table, but that’s a thought John’s been sitting on. Sometimes it’s more fun to surprise Chas with an offer than to tease him with it.

John’s luck isn’t great on the whole, and it’s even worse with love. But as Chas returns to stroking John’s hair, his attention not so fixed on whatever he’s doing on the tablet that he’s forgotten about John, John decides his luck could be worse.

He’ll probably rethink that next time things go to shit, but for now, his thoughts are turning pleasantly hazy and Chas makes an excellent pillow. That’s enough.

**Author's Note:**

> hello i am a literal insomniac and this is a blatant 2am projection of my desire for sleep onto a character who can probably sleep in all sorts of inconvenient places, but that's a fic for another day


End file.
